Multi-Million pound revamp for Merseyside railway stations!

Posted: 15/08/2014

Hamilton Square railway station, located in Birkenhead on the Wirral is set to close for up to six months for a multi-million pound revamp to take place. Work is due to begin on Monday 29th September until spring 2015. Included in the improvements to the station will be work to the present platform and surrounding tunnel areas as well as new flooring, brighter lights and better customer information in order to help commuters as much as possible.

After these transformations are complete, Hamilton Square railway station will be a cleaner, less cluttered and lighter station. Even though the station will be closed to the public, trains will still continue to pass through the area, meanwhile a bus replacement service will be provided from Hamilton Square. This service will operate in a loop first commuting between Birkenhead Central and Conway Park. It will run every five minutes during the hours of 7 and 10am as well as 4 and 7pm Monday to Friday and every 10 minutes at all other additional times. The replacement trip is said to take around 15-20 minutes during peak times.

Director for Network Rail, Ian Joslin stated; “This work will significantly improve Hamilton Square station and provide passengers with a better beginning or end to their journey. The redeveloped station will be a positive addition to the railway in Merseyside, building on the recent improvements made at Lime Street, Liverpool Central and James Street. The nature of the work means it can only be carried out while the station is closed. We apologise for the inconvenience this will cause but we are working closely with Mersey rail and Mersey travel to minimise disruption as much as possible”.

The managing director of Mersey Rail, Maarten Spaargaren also commented; “We know that the temporary closure of the station is not good for customers in the short-term, but I am confident that that the upgrade will make a big difference and people will really like the new look and feel.

The upgrade that is due to take place is part of a widespread project to revamp all five stations which connect with Liverpool City Centre. The Liverpool City Centre station was revamped during 2012 along with James Street and Lime Street in 2013. Moorfields is also due to be revamped next year.

What do you think of the two Mersey Rail station revamps that have taken place?